Brothers Keeper
by noodles10
Summary: The Braxton's life's are shattered as revenge is being sought. Can Brax keep his brothers safe as men from all over descend upon Summer Bay for Revenge?
1. Chapter 1

**Hi all, this is my first Home and Away fan fiction! Please be gentle with me haha**

**I take all criticism well, i'm a new fan to the show so I might not have all the little details right but hey, that's the joy of fan fiction! It's fiction! But if you have any ideas that I could implement, throw them at me! **

**Not sure if there is a massive fan base on here yet for Home and away but chuck me a review if you would like more and I will update...**

**Thanks for reading...**

Brother's Keeper

Life in Summer Bay had hit a lull. Everybody had been going about their daily business without too many issues. Brax was easily running Angelo's and his relationship with Ricky was steadily improving. Heath was enjoying his parenthood with his wife Bianca. Casey was excelling with his personal trainer gym and although not in a relationship, he was content. Kyle finally felt at ease with his brothers, his past discretions forgiven, he had earned the name Braxton. His relationship with Phoebe had settled well after her father had eventually gone back to Melbourne leaving them alone.

But, unbeknown to any of them, their peace was about to be shattered.

Locking up Angelo's after the night shift, Kyle and Phoebe walked hand in hand to the door and eyed Heath's ute in the carpark. The weather had turned nasty with a tropical storm due to batter the region. Playing it safe, they took the ute to ensure a safe ride home. As soon as they had stepped outside, the winds blew them back a step.

"Run," Kyle yelled over the wind, pulling Phoebe with him. As soon as they were safely in the car, Phoebe let out a yell of excitement as Kyle grinned. "It's going to get bad out here," Kyle said quietly, his hazel eyes turning serious,

"Well, take me home and keep me warm" Phoebe threw back with a glint in her eye.

The trip from Angelo's to Saxen Avenue wasn't far, however, the main road in was blocked. Pulling up to the cones, Kyle peered through the now torrential rain, there were no road workers in sight, just cones and flashing lights,

"A tree could be down," Phoebe mused,

"We could walk, although Heath would kill me if his ute got damaged in this storm,"

"Go around?" Kyle was thinking as a black 4 wheel drive truck pulled up behind them flashing it's lights and tooting the horn, "What the hell?" Phoebe yelled getting a fright, "Just go around Kyle." Kyle turned left at the roadblock, hoping the impatient maniac behind would go right. No such luck. The truck behind them sat right on their bumper, their headlights on full and the horn blasting, "Pull over!" Phoebe screamed at Kyle as he increased his speed,

"Where?" he said desperately as he now realized he was on his way into the National Park with nowhere to go,

"Kyle!" Phoebe screamed as the truck behind rammed into them. Concentrating on the road, Kyle accelerated into the storm, blindly turning corners on the dark isolated road with a maniac behind them.

"Phoebs, hold onto something!" Kyle gritted as the truck roared up and rammed them again,

"We are going deeper" Phoebe whispered as Kyle desperately fought the old ute to stay in control, but at the next bend, the ute swung out of his control, putting them into a spin, before Phoeve could even scream, the ute was t-boned off the ridge and down into the river.

"Shit!" The driver of the truck muttered disappearing down the ridge towards the mangled ute. It had landed the right way up but both Kyle and Phoeve were unconsious. Signalling to his truck, 3 men clambered out and down the ridge, "Get her out and keep her warm" he yelled over the wind and the rain before climbing back up the ridge,

"What about the boy?" one of them yelled. The driver stopped and looked at Kyle, his right arm was trapped between the door and the seat, blood poured from a head wound and the steering wheel had lowered trapping his legs. The river was swelling with the rain and over time, would eventually submerge the ute, drowning Kyle.

"Leave the bastard there."

**Thanks for reading...I try to update as soon as possible! **


	2. Chapter 2

**Brothers Keeper **

**Thanks for the reviews guys! **

**Chapter 2**

The driver of the truck carried in the bleeding Phoebe into the hospital,

"I need help!" he yelled, Nate rushed towards him, he looked vaguely familiar, but not as familiar as the girl,

"Phoebe?"

"I'm her father, Mark Nicholson. I found her down on the beach like this." Mark gently lowered Phoebe onto a gurney, "I think she's been beaten up." Nate's eyes briefly flew up to look at her father, before carrying his examination of Phoebe.

"Jules!" he called to a nearby nurse, "Clear everything, she has head trauma, collapsed lung, severe facial injuries, possible fracture of the tib, fib and femur in both legs," Nate carried on listing Phoebes injuries as he pushed her into a private room. As Mark attempted to push his way in, Nate looked up again, "I'm sorry Mr Nicholson, please stay outside, " as the doors closed, Nate spied April in the room, "Discreetly ring Brax, let him know about Phoebe, this girl was in a car accident." Aprils eyes widened,

"Are you sure?"

Nodding, he showed the seat belt mark, "She was the passenger. There is no way her father was driving, he has no injuries at all..." 

"Kyle" April whispered,

"Possibly, i'm going to stabilize her for theatre and then see what I can get from him," Nate said nodding his head towards Mark. Quietly, April headed to the corner of the room and made the call. After a tense 10mins, Nate had managed to stabilize Phoebe enough for her to be taken to theatre.

"Mr Nicholson?"

"How is she?" Mark demanded. Nate took a moment to size the man up, he was short and solid, a red faced man who was used to bullying people to get his own way,

"Mr Nicholson, Phoebe was in a car accident, those injuries are significant and contradict the theory of her being 'beaten up'," Nate waiting for a reaction and got none, "Where is the driver?"

"Humph..." Mark sat down, an air of stubbornness around him, "Dead."

Nate tried not to panic, "Where is he?" Nate pleaded, kneeling so he was eye to eye with the man, "Mr Nicholson please..." Nate was cut off by a commotion at the door. Brax stormed in without shutting the doors behind him, the wind was so fierce it sent paper flying and chairs banging to the ground,

"Nate, what the hell is going on?" Brax was shaking and not from the cold, a rage was building up inside of him and it intensified when he saw Mark, who refused to even look at the oldest Braxton,

"Mark brought Phoebe in with severe car crash injuries. She was definitely in a car accident as a passenger. Mark claimed he found her on the beach, however, with her injuries, there is no way she could have gotten there from the crash site on her own."

"She was with Kyle," Brax said looking at Mark, "Where is he?"

"Dead" Mark whispered loudly enough for all to hear, Brax looked like all the wind had been punched out of him, he leant over, with his hands on his knees,

"Then where is his body?" After a long silent pause, Brax crouched down infront of the man, "In 2 mins, my brothers will be here, they will drag you into that storm and dump you in the middle of the ocean to drown a long, painful death. If your lucky, a shark will rip you limb by limb to avoid drowning," Marks eyes flashed up to meet Brax's, "Now, where is my brother?"

"National Park, about 5ks in, down a ridge in the river," Standing up, Brax held back his rage.

"How's Phoebe?" That question had Mark on his feet, attention drawn to Nate,

"She's suffered alot of broken bones, all repairable. However, after surgery we will know more." Nate said as Mark slunk back into his chair, pulling out his phone, he started texting away.

Pulling Brax to the door, Nate carried on, " You need to be prepared to find him dead Brax," Nate said gently, "Phoebes in a coma with little to no chance of waking up. The force of the crash whipped her head back and forth so severely it caused her brain to collide at high velocity with the skull. She has several brain bleeds I suspect although we will know more when she comes out of theatre."

"Omigod," Brax breathed out, looking out the window, the storm was gradually getting worse, "I can't leave him out there in that"

Nodding his agreement, "I'll pack a bag and come with you,"

"No Nate, it's too bad, plus, Phoebe needs you. Look, Heath, Casey and I will find him,"

"If he's alive, be careful." Nate shook Brax's hand, at that moment, the Casey and Heath stormed into the hospital. Brax turned without any words spoken, and led his 2 younger brothers back into the storm.

Mark Nicholson watched the whole scene and sent a text to the men in the black truck.

'_Dispose of them all.'_

Kyle was vaguely aware of a pain in his arm and the cold. He groggily came to and found he could only move his left arm. Slowly opening his eyes, he gasped as the throbbing in his head intensified. Taking his time, he gradually came around. Slowly, everything was coming back to him, "Phoebs..." he croaked, looking gently around. He barely noticed the water swirling around his knees as the throbbing forced him back into unconsciousness again.

**So, all medical jargon was courtesy of google, lucky its fiction! LMK if nothing makes sense! **

**Thanks for reading **


	3. Chapter 3

**Brothers Keeper **

**Chapter 3**

The weather was getting worse. The cyclone battered the seaside town. Brax, Heath and Casey were driving through it in the desperate attempt to reach their brother.

"I'm going to kill him," Heath said breaking the silence,

"Let's find Kyle first and worry about Nicholson later" Brax said trying desperately to keep his car on the road but Brax kept them safe.

"Up ahead," Casey said as they neared the ridge, pulling over, Brax left the car running with the lights shining down the ridge. Jumping out Heath skidded to the edge and peered into the darkness.

"Kyle!" he shouted into his cupped hands, Casey grabbed the flashlights from the boot,

"Anything?" Brax asked joining Heath, Heath's only response was a shake of the head. Brax looked up at the night sky, the rain was falling thick and heavy, the winds were so strong, it was pushing them around. Looking at each other without words, the 3 brothers carefully made their way to the bottom of the ridge.

"Omigod," Casey gasped as his flashlight found the wrecked Ute,

"Kyle!" Brax shouted instantly taking off. Reaching the wreck, Brax tried to pull open the driver's door, "Kyle!" The water had risen to Kyle's waste, "Kyle!" Brax screamed hitting the window. Slowly, Kyle opened his eyes, "Oh thank god" Brax whispered resting his forehead on the window. Looking up, he saw Heath had managed to climb in the back passenger seat window. Heath climbed next to his brother and gently examined him.

"Heath..." Kyle whispered so quietly, Heath thought he had imagined it,

"You goose, you crashed my car" Heath said as he eyed the water level rising and his brothers trapped legs. Even opening the doors wouldn't release the water as it was the swollen river flooding the car.

"Phoebe?"

"In hospital buddy. Brax! He's trapped, you gotta get that door open! He aint got long before he'll be under water"

"Casey find something to get that door open." Brax yelled over the wind, "I'm going to get a crow bar out of the car" Turning to head up the ridge, he was momentarily stopped by a shadow passing in front of his cars headlights. Squinting against the rain, Brax spotted two figures, then before he could do anything, his car was reversing and gone.

'Shit!" Brax yelled crawling up the ridge in the mud, he got to his feet and was confused by a gun in his face. Looking up, he was greeted by a stranger,

"Mark Nicholson says bye" thinking quickly, Brax pushed the hand away just as the man fired. The bullet fired behind him,

"Casey get down!" Heath screamed as the bullet just missed him smashing the window in the back. Heath threw his body over Kyle's, pulling his brother as far down as possible to protect him, two more bullets flew in their direction.

"Hang in there Kyle" Heath whispered as another bullet tore into the car.

Brax desperately tried to get the fun off the attacker, each bullet fired tore through his heart as he knew all his younger brothers were down there unprotected. Holding the other mans arm, he managed to ram his shoulder into the attackers gut and force him to the ground, forcing the gun to go skidding free, crawling through the mud, Brax slippery fingers gripped the gun, onto his back, he saw his attacker was standing him. Without any hesitation, Brax fired he remaining bullets into the man's chest.

Panting on the ground, Brax took a minute to regain his composure.

"Brax! Brax!" Casey screamed from behind a tree forcing him to get up.

"I'm alright!" he yelled standing upon the ridge,

"Great!" Heath yelled sarcastically, "Get down here, the water is still rising!" Hurrying down the ridge, Casey had found a crowbar in Heaths boot and Brax found him trying to pry open the door. With the 2 of them together, the door popped open. Kneeling down next to Kyle, Brax noted the water level, it was up to Kyle's chest and his as he knelt. Brax looked him in the eye,

"What hurts?"

"My arm" Kyle said quietly while Brax gently looked it over. It had been trapped by the door and was definitely broken.

"Your legs?"

"Just cold" Kyle said shivering,

"Ok, Heath and Case, pull the seat on the count of 3,i'm going to use the seat release lever to push it back." His brothers nodded their understanding, "Ready?" Brax asked Kyle, who nodded numbly, " 1, 2, 3" Groaning, the brothers managed to push the seat back enough to free Kyle's legs. Getting him out of the car, he sat on the ground shivering and shaking. Brax sat behind him to keep him upright.

"We gotta get out of here, the guy that took my car could come back at any time." Brax stated, "Casey, take the road, keep out of sight, don't flag down any car you don't know. When you get to town, get any help you possibly can." Casey stood up and took off up the ridge and down the road.

"Kyle," Brax said quietly shaking his brother, "We gotta move and you are going to have to walk to stay warm," Brax was cold and he hadn't been sitting in a water filled car for hours. He knew his brother was starting to get hypothermia,

"Too tired" Kyle groaned as Heath pulled him to his feet. They supported Kyle between them and set off up the ridge.

xxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxx

"Damn it" the attackers friend said watching. They only had 1 gun and he knew he couldn't take them 1 on 1. He was in front of them and had time to take the youngest one out on his way to town for reinforcements. The cell towers were down so he knew he could get them all before help arrived.

**Sorry for delay! hopefully have chapter 4 up tomorrow or Tuesday **


	4. Chapter 4

**Brothers Keeper **

**Chapter 4**

**This is where the fiction part comes! I've kinda changed Kyles past and made his foster living arrangements different...Hope nobody minds too much!**

Casey kept a steady pace running to town. He knew it would take him a couple of hours to get there. He stayed off the road, but running alongside to it about 1km into the forest. The rain was freezing but the wind would made it feel like ice. His eyes were stinging and watering and his nose was running but he knew he had to keep going. He sensed rather than heard or saw a car. Taking cover in a bush which allowed him to see the car and have time to jump out and flag down if friendly. Casey kept himself hidden and waited. Sure enough, headlights crept around the bend coming from the direction he had ran. Squinting through the rain, Casey instantly recognized Brax's car. Allowing the darkness to swallow him, Casey surmised the car was going way to slow even for the conditions, so he knew the driver was possibly looking for him. Casey patiently waited for the car to pass and then he resumed his jog trailing the car safely back to town.

xxxxxxxxxxxxx

It was a team effort to get Kyle up the ridge. After 10 long minutes, all three were at the top, panting and covered in mud, Kyle had used what energy he had and he struggled to stay awake.

"We have to keep moving, he's going to freeze if we leave him out here any longer," Heath panted to Brax, nodding, Brax got to his feet and together they pulled Kyle up between them. Carefully, so they didn't hurt his injured arm, they slung his shoulders around their necks,

"Leave me" Kyle slurred, fighting exhaustion

"Never going to happen," Brax said as they slowly took off. Kyle tried to keep his feet moving to help them but eventually he lost the battle. Heath and Brax dragged their brother to the safety of the bush,

"We can't do this" Heath stopped,

"We have to keep going..."

"Brax, the Kid is done. Take him a little deeper, bunker down and keep him warm. I'm going to follow Casey," Heath removed Kyles arm from around his shoulders and let him gently lean on Brax,

"Heath..."

"Keep him warm Brax, we will find help" and with that, Heath was gone.

"Shit" Brax swore, he looked at Kyle who was semi-conscious and decided Heath was right. Half carrying, half dragging, Brax took his brother bush.

xxxxx

Casey's legs burned, his lungs were on fire. He had neared the edge of the National Park and was out of hiding places. There weren't many houses between here and Summer Bay and in this weather, Casey couldn't get anyone to answer. He knew he was still an hour away from help, so he forced his jelly legs to keep going.

xxxxx

Nate had finished looking at Phoebes MRI and X-rays.

The young girl was brain dead.

There was nothing left to do but turn off the machine when her father was ready. Mark did not take the news well. He had stormed through the near empty hospital throwing chairs and punching holes in the walls. Nate was the only one in the room when he came in to say goodbye to his daughter. His eyes were swollen and red.

"Oh Phoebe, I'm so sorry. I'm so sorry!" He looked at Nate, then back at his daughter, he leaned in and whispered in her ear, " I will kill him for this my baby, he killed you and I will make sure he suffers before he dies." He held her hand as he nodded to Nate. Nate hesitated before flicking the switch, he thought about Kyle's love for this free spirited girl and how he should be here. Closing his eyes, he turned the machine off and walked away as Mark wailed and cried as Phoebe died.

Looking at the Nurses, he made a decision,

"I'm going after the Braxton's, cell towers are down but landlines are still working. Ring Hannah if you need her," Nate struggled into a rain coat before leaving the hospital.

xxxxxxxxxxx

Brax had settled him and Kyle under a bush. He used as many branches as he could find to help block out the wind and rain. Crawling inside his make shift hut, he was pleased to find it dry. He stripped his muddy and wet jacket off and was pleased to find his t-shirt and hoody dry. He quickly stripped Kyle out of his wet clothes and carefully, avoiding any more damage to his arm, placed the warm dry tops on him.

He then wriggled around behind his younger brother and wrapped his arms around his chest and gently rocked back and forth,

"Please don't hurt me" Kyle whimpered suddenly,

"What?" Brax asked shocked by the statement,

"No please, Don't, No! arghhh..." Kyle suddenly flinched at an unknown enemy,

"Kyle!" Brax said loudly shaking his brother, "Kyle! Wake up!"

Kyle continued to whimper and cry in his sleep. Brax watched him, his heart softened at the pain he had heard. Kyle continued to shiver and shake, he was on the edge of hypothermia. He was pale and clammy, his heart was racing and he was struggling to breath.

"Omigod Casey, please hurry." Brax whispered to no one in particular.

xxxxxx

After clearing debris away from his car, Nate pulled out of the hospital car park. He had just reached the outskirts when he spotted a familiar car on the side of the road. Pulling over, he quickly ran to the driver's side of Brax's car and found the keys in the ignition and nobody around. He passed the closest farm house a while ago. There was still gas in the tank and the ignition still turned over. Hopping back in his car, Nate pondered what to do now, would there be any point in continuing if the boys were here somewhere?

Nate was smart enough to know that they wouldn't face the weather outside if the car worked fine. He had just started the his car when something in his rear view mirror caught his attention.

"Omigod" he whispered as a figure loomed up behind the car.

**I know, lots of different aspects here so stick with me! They will collide shortly!**

Thanks for the reviews...


	5. Chapter 5

**Chapter 5: **

"Nate?" Casey gasped out of breath before throwing himself inside the passenger door, "Go Nate, Go! ' Casey gasped loudly. Once they were safely away, Casey relaxed slightly,

"What the hell happened?" Nate asked keeping his eyes on the road as Casey checked behind them,

"Someone tried to kill us. Brax killed one and the other one took the car. He's searching the houses back there so I doubled back behind him and saw you. I chased you and thank God you stopped,"

"Why did he desert the car?"

" I lead him away from it, he was chasing me. I tried to get him as far from it as possible so I could go and get it, which is what I was doing when I saw you,"

"How's Kyle?" Nate asked wearily,

"Alive, barely." They travelled along quietly as the rain battered the car. Around a bend not far into the National Park, they saw a person quickly dart off to the left into the bush,

"That looked like..."

"Heath" Casey finished as Nate stopped the car, "Heath!" Casey screamed getting out of the car,

'Case? Thank God!" Heath said embracing his younger brother quickly, "We gotta go" Heath jumped into the front seat,

"How's Kyle?"

"Not good."

xxxxxxxx

Brax had no idea how long he had been in the hut for. He hadn't let Kyle go despite the nightmarish screams and pleas he had cried, suddenly, Kyle stopped shivering and went limp,

"Kyle, buddy, Kyle!" Brax shook his brother, quickly he found Kyle's pulse, it was weak and slow but still there. Closing his eyes, he thought of Charlie,

"Please Charlie, I know he's done wrong in the past but we just found him. I can't lose him yet, no like this, please Charlie, give him strength. Heck, give him anything to get through this." Brax wiped tears away as he quietly shook his brother, "You are not dying Kyle Braxton. Not yet." He kept his fingers firmly on the pulse in Kyle's arm, refusing to let go. After a while he heard his name and recognised Heaths voice instantly,

"They're here" he said looking at Kyle with a smile. It was then he noticed the pulse was gone, "Kyle, Kyle" standing up and pushing his way out into the storm, Brax dragged Kyle out onto the ground and started CPR, "Help!" he screamed pushing Kyle's chest up and down in between breaths. He heard the rescue party get closer and prayed again to Charlie, "Not...Yet..." he panted to the sky,

"Brax!" Nate's distinct accent had never sounded so good, falling down next to Kyle, he quickly found a pulse, "You brought him back Brax, he's alive." Falling back onto his behind, Brax took long slow breaths as Nate quickly looked Kyle over, "He's hypothermic with internal bleeding, possibly his spleen. We have to go." Casey helped Brax up who looked at him with admiration while Heath scooped Kyle's limp form up and carefully carried him to the car.

xx

Heath drove back to town with Casey in the front seat. Kyle lay down along the backseat with his head on Brax's legs and Nate straddling him. Twice they lost him and twice Nate brought him back. There were no signs of the men and Brax's car was gone.

"How's Phoebe?" Brax asked quietly, Nate raised his eyes and the look said it all. Casey punched the window, Heath gripped the wheel tighter and Brax simply looked out the window. The storm was dying down now but Brax knew a new one was brewing for his family.

Arriving at the hospital, Casey ran in to get help and came back moments later with the nurses and a gurney. Brax, Heath and Casey watched as Nate and a team of nurses disappeared in a hurry into the empty theatre room.

**Hmmmm, for some reason hard to write! Couldn't get the scene from my head to the paper! LMK what you think...**

**Plus...more definitely to come! Definitely going to be a multi chapter but unfortunately I don't do romance that well (Just ask Phoebe!) so probably will be just whumping the boys...**


	6. Chapter 6

**Sorry for the delay, RL got way to hectic! **

**This chapter is a filler, so a little on the timid side but for all those that like to see them hurt, it is coming! **

**Thanks for all the reviews! **

**Chapter 6 **

The boys sat outside the theatre, a nurse had handed out blankets but they had discarded them. It felt like hours waiting for Nate. Heath had rung the girls and filled them in. Ricki was desperate to come down but Heath persuaded them to pack a bag and go to Perth for a holiday. After much arguing from both Ricki and Bianca, Heath won.

"The girls and kids are leaving tonight," Heath said sitting down as Brax nodded pleased,

"If Mark has his way, he'll go at Kyle again, especially since Phoebe..." Casey couldn't quite bring himself to say it.

Again, they sat in silence. After a while, April came out of one of the rooms,

"How is he?" she asked quietly,

"Still waiting," Brax said in his usual gruff way, "Where's Phoebe's dad?"

"Oh, Sergeant Emmerson took him in for questions,"

"So, Phoebe's still here?" Heath asked, April nodded looking back towards the door she came through. No more words were needed as April quietly excused herself.

After hours, Nate finally emerged, causing all three brothers to stand at once,

"He's alive" Nate said quickly reassuring the brothers, "We had to warm him up before surgery to remove his ruptured spleen but it's all done. He's going to be out of it for a few days. He's suffered a concussion, broken arm, a few cracked ribs and hypothermia. He's very lucky that was it."

Breathing out, Brax relaxed slightly, "He know about Phoebe?"

"Not yet, he's way to critical to tell him something like that but he's also way to out of it. The concussion alone was serious and may leave short term memory loss but we won't know more until he fully comes too."

"How long..." Casey was interrupted by the doors opening behind, letting in the cold win. The rain and gale force winds had died down leaving the Bay cold and devastated. Sergeant Emmerson led the way followed by several police officers and Mark Nicholson.

"You bastard!" Heath said straight away firing up and advancing on the man,

"Heath" Emmerson warned as his officers held the brothers back,

"What's going on?" Nate asked quickly,

"Mr Nicholson is taking his daughter back to Melbourne." And at that moment, an ambulance pulled up outside the doors,

"Like hell, he killed her and left Kyle for dead!" Brax fumed, Mark temporarily lost his composure at the realization that Kyle was still alive,

"There is no evidence Brax, it looks like an accident, Kyle lost control in the storm," Emmerson sounded like he didn't believe it either, but Mark was a lawyer and he was right, what little evidence there might have been was washed away in the storm,

"Excuse me," Mark said smuggly leading the paramedics into his daughters room,

"This is bullshit" Casey exclaimed, still blocked by the officers,

"This aint over," Heath threatened as they watched Phoebe's body wheeled away covered by a sheet. Once Mark and Phoebe had gone, Emmerson pulled Brax aside,

"You know this is bullshit. Why would they drive out there in a storm? Why did he lie to Nate?"

"Brax" Emmerson stopped any further questions, "I don't like it either but there is no proof, no evidence. Even with Kyle's statement when he can make it, it's his word against a lawyers. No judge or Jury will believe an ex-con over a lawyer. I'm sorry, i really am," Emmerson left, taking his officers with him.

"You two go home, get some sleep. We'll take turns staying with Kyle," Brax said facing his brothers with his hands on his hips, "Nobody is to leave him alone. That man had done nothing but terrorize Kyle to leave Phoebe and now his precious daughter is dead. He'll be back."

Quietly, Heath and Casey left the hospital as Brax entered Kyles room. He was in a drugged sleep, his right arm in a cast and a nasty bruise on his head. Brax knew the blanket hid the bruises on his ribs and surgery scar. He had never seen Kyle so pale or small. Quietly, he sat next to his little brother, watching and waiting for an attack to come.

xxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxx

Mark Nicholson had watched his daughters body loaded onto a plane to Melbourne. He had organized the funeral home to collect her. Watching the plane take off, he drove in silence to his hotel room in Sydney. He arrived to find 5 of his men waiting.

"You disposed of Will?" he asked tiredly,

"No one will find him"

"Good." After a moments pause, he looked at his henchmen, all 5 were big boys from all over. They were criminal's he had set free and hired to cover his loose ends. "I want Kyle Braxton alive, i want to torture the boy until he pleads for death. Come up with a plan." He stood up as his men nodded their agreement, not one of them hesitated as they knew the pay would be too much to deny.

**Yup, a little slow but it's going to heat up shortly! **

**Thanks for following, much appreciated...**


	7. Chapter 7

**So, Chapter 7, it's a long one! More angst than H/C but leading up to some real H/C is chapter 8! **

**This chapter was too short to divide into 2 chapters plus wanted to get the mushy stuff out of the way for the pain...**

**Lol**

**Thanks for reviewing and reading! **

**Chapter 7**

Casey was sitting next to Kyle's bed. He and his brothers had watched him over the last 3 days. Kyle had suffered a fever and infection that threatened to take his life but Nate and Hannah had saved him.

Casey was flicking through a magazine when Kyle started to stir,

"Kyle, buddy, Kyle!" Casey said excited before running out the door, spotting Nate, he pulled him by the arm towards the room, "Nate! He's waking up!" Rushing into the room together, Casey rushed to his bedside,

"We're here Kyle," Casey waited patiently as Nate checked his stats,

"His temp is still high, he's coming around though," Nate smiled, "I'll call your brothers," Casey moved his chair next to Kyle's bed, slowly but surely, Kyle woke up.

"Hey," Casey grinned, "Good to see you awake,"

"Water" Kyle croaked, jumping up, Casey held the cup as Kyle took slow sips from a straw, exhausted, he rested back on his pillows.

"How ya feeling?"

"Like i'm on fire, what happened?" Casey hesitated at the question,

"What do you remember?" Looking up, Kyle struggled,

"We locked up Angelos, and were driving home, a car was chasing us, it kept forcing me towards National Park, Phoebe was so scared. I lost control..." Kyle tried desperately to remember more and then suddenly tried to sit right up, "Where's Phoebe?" Casey had instinctively held him back, trying to keep him in the bed,

"Kyle, just lie down, your exhausted" Casey gently pushed his brother back down,

"Case, where's Phoebe? Is she alright? Is she here?" Casey struggled not knowing what to do and was saved by Brax and Heath entering the room, summing up the situation by the looks on his brothers faces, Brax knew Kyle was desperate to see Phoebe,

"How ya feeling?" Heath blurted oblivious to the situation,

"Where's Phoebe?" Kyle asked again desperate, stopping Heath in his tracks. None of the brothers could say it, none. The room was deathly quiet, Kyle's eyes filled with tears as he desperately searched his brothers faces for any sign, his checks were flushed and sweat was forming on his forehead. He was in a half sitting position glancing from brother to brother,

"Kyle" Brax said quietly, taking slow steps towards the bed, "there was nothing they could do..."Kyle's tears finally broke free,

"Can I see her?" he choked, struggling to compose himself, Brax's own eyes filled at the pain in his voice, taking the remaining few steps, Brax embraced his brother as he broke down. Casey and Heath huddled to the side, not knowing what to do, after a while, Kyle composed himself to pull away, Brax held his younger brothers head in his hands and look him in the eye,

"Mark took her to Melbourne," Kyle again struggled with his pain and tried to move away but Brax wouldn't let him go,

"I...killed...her?"

"No no no!" Casey said rushing to his other side, "Mark did! He was in the car behind!"

Kyle's eyes flew up to meet Brax's,

"Then why did he take her?"

"We had no proof Kyle, nothing..."

"She's gone?" Nodding, Brax held his brother again. Flicking his head towards the door, Heath and Casey left them alone.

Brax stayed with Kyle as he composed himself, he answered questions and filled in gaps. They had sat in silence for over an hour,

"I'm starving," Kyle said slowly,

"Yea, I bet" Brax said relishing the chance to stretch his legs, leaving the room, he took a look back. Kyle was still feverish, his face flushed. He had ditched the sling to get more comfortable and he was staring out the window. Brax left to find him some lunch and was returning when John and Marilyn stopped him in the hallway.

"Oh my gosh, Heath filled us in at the cafe, is he ok? Poor boy, poor Phoebe, Do you know what happened? What can I do?" Marilyn flustered as John rolled his eyes and stopped her endless chatting,

"How is he?" Brax half smiled at the reprieve,

"Gutted. He's struggling a big, still got a fever but he'll come through."

"Well good. Put that hospital food in the bin, here's some good tucker to feed him up on," Marilyn smiled handing a bag of cafe goodies over,

"Thanks, it is much appreciated," Brax smiled walking away to Kyle's room.

xx

Pushing open Kyle's door, Brax's heart leapt from his chest, Kyle's bed was empty. His IV was dangling, dropping the food, he rushed into the bathroom. Kyle's hospital clothes were on the ground a bag that the boy's had there with fresh clothing had been ransacked,

"Shit" Brax cursed rushing towards the carpark where his rental car was, he was about to call Heath when Nate stopped him,

"Everything ok?" Nate asked worried by the look on Brax's face,

"Nah, he's gone" Brax said not wanting to stop,

"Brax, wait, what? He's still in danger of infection, he's still feverish..."

"I know alright, I'm trying to do something about it"

"Was it..." Nate said quickly again stopping Brax,

'Nah, looks like he's taken off," This time Brax didn't stop,

"Yea?" Heath said on the other end of the phone,

"Get Case and get looking. Kyle's done a runner," Brax hung up throwing himself inside of the car, he was about to hit the gas pedal when Alf caught his attention, waving from in front of the car with Irene,

"Everything alright young fella? We were coming to check on young Kyle" Alf leant in the window,

shaking his head, Brax gripped the steering wheel tighter, "He found out about Phoebe and has taken off,"

"Omigod," Irene said from behind, "You go, we'll check the restaurant, surf club and cafe,"

"Thanks. Ring me if you find him,"

"Of course Darl," Irene gently pulled Alf back towards her car.

xxxxxxx

After a few hours of looking, there was no sign of him. Alf had recruited half of Summer Bay as a search party that had combed the small town for any sign.

Heading into the Surf Club, Brax was met by an army of locals, the police and his brothers, all looking dejected,

"Maybe we need to consider that something else happened to Kyle," Alf said quietly,

"What are you talking about?" Brax looked around the room and realized what they had been talking about before he came in, "He would not off himself," Brax said sternly, looking around the room again, this time no one would meet his eyes, "he wouldn't! It was Mark Nicholson..."

"We checked security footage from the hospital Brax, he walked out on his own accord and hailed a taxi," Nate said quietly,

"We all know he misses Phoebe" Heath said watching as Brax turned to face him,

"We wouldn't do it" with that, Brax left in search of his younger brother,

"What's this about Phoebe's dad?" Dex asked,

Sighing, Heath filled them in on what happened.

xxxxxxxx

Sitting in his car, Brax breathed deeply to control his anger, pulling out his phone he ran the one person he would listen to,

"Brax?"

"Ricky" he closed his eyes at the sound of her voice,

"We know everything and are on our way back,"

"No, Don't..."

"Too late Darryl Braxton" Brax heard Bianca's stern reply and smiled,

"I can't find him Rick, I just don't know what to do. They all think he's committed suicide but I know he hasn't, he wouldn't"

"Then he hasn't." She said, "Look, he loved her more than anyone else, right? He can't be with her so he's gone to the place that means the most to them, that brings back her memory alive to him. Think Brax, where did you go after Charlie?" Mentioning Charlie hurt Ricky more than Brax. Brax loved her, Ricky knew that, but he would always love Charlie more,

"I know where he is" Brax said hanging up the phone.

xxxxx

It was nearly dark by the time Brax entered National Park, it didn't take him long to find the crash site. Someone had taken out fresh flowers and a guitar and laid them on the side of the road. He quickly texted Casey and told him his theory before leaving his car on the side of the road. Brax shivered in the night air, walking towards the edge of the ridge, he found a lone figure leaning against a tree next to the river. Heath's ute had been towed and the only sign of the accident was some debris left behind. Carefully making his way down the muddy ridge, Brax slowly walked towards Kyle. His head was resting against a tree staring at the river, his cast was dirt and wet, his clothes were damp from the light drizzle falling but his face was still flushed,

"I should have died" he said quietly still staring at the river,

'Nah," Brax shook his head, "Nobody should have" Brax crouched down in front of Kyle and absently played with some grass, "I've been there Kyle, when I lost Charlie all I wanted to do was swap places, I still would. But we can't, Phoebe was a free spirit, now she really is free mate. Love her for eternity but let her go," Kyle looked at Brax and was surprised to find tears falling,

It's so hard,"

"I know, God knows I know" Brax smiled, "We can't change what happened, but honour her by living,"

"I just want to say goodbye," Kyle's tears fell as he said those words, "To tell her how much I loved her, and that she was my world. When everyone doubted me, she didn't. She completed me, Brax, I've never felt so empty, ever..." Brax pulled Kyle into his arms and let his brother cry. No words were needed.

Eventually Kyle pulled away, "Thanks for coming," Standing up, Brax gently pulled Kyle up with hi,

"No more disappearing huh? Especially with a fever" Grinning, Kyle accepted the slight slap to the head.

Heading up the ridge, Brax was about to call the others when he noticed a black van parked behind his car.

"Whose that?" Kyle asked to be greeted by a sound that slowed time down that night...

A gunshot.


	8. Chapter 8

**Please enjoy :D **

**Chapter 8**

Time froze as the sound of the shot still rung through the isolated forest. Kyle's eyes swung to his big brothers, for a moment Kyle thought it was a warning shot until he saw blood seeping from his brothers shoulder,

"Brax!" he went to run to his falling brother but was held back by one of Marks men who silenced him with the butt of the gun to his temple, Kyle instantly crumpled unconscious.

"Kyle" Brax gasped with pain, adrenalin pumping through him, he swung at the man closest to him and connected,

"Darryl" Marks calm voice forced Brax to look, Mark had the hand gun pointed at Kyle's head, "Get in the van quietly, and he will live a little longer. Fight, and he will die right now." Brax hesitated briefly, before dropping his raised fist. He winced in pain as his hands were tied behind his back. He was led to the van and shoved into the back as one of Marks men gently laid the unconscious Kyle across the middle seats.

Sitting in the front, Mark whispered to himself, "Let the torture begin."

xxxxxxx

"Where are they?" Heath muttered to himself as Brax's phone went to voice mail again,

"They could still be talking" Casey offered. They had returned home after getting Brax's text to say he had found Kyle but had not heard anything since. It had just passed the hour mark since the last text and Heath was agitated. He heard a car pull into the driveway and rushed outside hoping it was his brothers. With Casey behing him, he dejectedly looked at his wife and RIcky climbing out of a taxi,

"Oh, it's only you"

"Good to see you too Heath" Bianca said cooly, "What do we know?" Casey and Heath filled them in as they carried their bags inside,

"He's been over an hour?" RIcky said slipped her hands into her back pockets, "Something's wrong"

"That's what I said" Heath said defiantly, "Give me your keys"

"I'm coming with" Ricky said equally defiant,

"Let's go." Leaving Casey and Bianca behind at home in case they turned up, the two raced to the crash site.

xxxxx

"There's his rental" Heath said spotting the car on the side of the road. Jumping out, Heath raced to the edge of the ridge, "Brax! Kyle!" his calls were unanswered so he raced down the muddy ridge still their names.

Ricky was about to follow when a dark object on the road lit up with Casey's name,

"Omigod," she whispered picking up Brax's phone, she then noticed a small blood pool, "Heath!" She screamed touching it and confirming it was blood, "Heath!" she screamed again louder,

"You found them?" he asked panting after climbing back up, shaking her head, she pointed, tears and fear prevented her from actually saying the words. Heath looked and slowly it dawned on him, "Nicholson"

"He has them?" Ricky said slowly, as tears spilt down her face,

"Shit" Heath swore grabbing Brax's phone.

xxxxxxxx

Kyle slowly came to, his head throbbed again, his broken arm ached and he had popped a few stitches. He groggily looked around him and saw he was in a dimly lit room. It was damp and cold, but he didn't mind, his body was on fire.

"You ok?" A voice startled his thoughts and he turned to see Brax leaning against the wall, his hands were attached to chains attached to the wall. Slowly he looked down and saw his uninjured arm was also chained.

Nodding slightly to indicate he was ok, Kyle pushed himself into a sitting position next to his brother,

"Are you?"

Looking at his shoulder, Brax nodded slightly. His gun shot had gone through missing the important parts and had stopped bleeding, "Where are we?" Kyle said looking around,

"An abandoned farm in the middle of nowhere" Brax said frustrated. Kyle could only nod, he knew no one knew where they were.

After a long silent period, Brax saw Kyle dozing off and decided it was a good time to talk to his brother,

"Kyle"

"Mmmm"

"I haven't had the chance to ask you something,"

"Funny that" Kyle grinned

"Yeah, well, um," Brax thought long and hard about how to start the converstaion,

"Spit it out Brax"

"When you were hurt, i stayed with you in the forest while the boys went for help. You were so out of it but you were...scared. Screaming for help and pleading not to be hurt. What the hell happened to you?" Kyle visibly paled even more, leaning his head against the concrete wall, he closed his eyes as pain he had buried deep down had been ripped open,

"Mum" he said quietly, "She, ah, tried. She so badly wanted Danny back and while he played her, she brought it. When she realized he would never leave Cheryl or you three, she slid into a dark place. I was 12, she started screaming at me that i was worthless, it was my fault Danny would never love her. She started drinking big time. She stopped buying groceries, stopping caring. I came home from school and found her dead in the kitchen. She had blown her brains out everywhere." Brax's eyes widened but he didn't dare interrupt his brother, "I was put into foster care but not many people want a 12 year old boy. I jumped from placement to placement until a permanent home was found by a middle aged couple. The social worker had just left and I was shoved into a room, it had nothing but a bed and mattress. 'We've only got you for the pay cheque boy, you hear me'," Kyle mimicked his foster fathers voice, "'You do what we say, when we say it'. They locked the door and left me in there. Meals were shoved in when they remembered and a bucket placed in the corner. The night before my first day at school, he beat the crap out of me, careful not to touch my face. He said, 'you tell anybody how you live, i'll tell them your a liar and you'll get worse than this. So I never told a soul. In the end, they started beating me for fun, locking me in the sed in the middle of winter was their favourite game." Kyle chocked as tears spilt,

"I never knew" Brax whispered,

"No one did" Kyle said harshly, "I'd scream and cry and no one came. When i was 15 i went to school and never returned. I found my way to Melbourne and lived on the streets. Got the old job her eand there, met Phoebe and my world changed."

"Kyle, why have you never told us?"

"Not even Phoebe knew Brax, for a long time I was unloved, told I was worthless, hopeless, stupid blah blah blah. Phoebe made me realize life was liveable! Then Danny found me." Kyle struggled slightly, "He convinced me to come with him, that he loved me. I so desperately wanted a family," Kyle said sadly, "anyway you know the next bit but when you forgave me and welcomed me to the family, I've never felt more honoured. I had brothers," Kyle laughed sadly, "I love all three of you,"

"We would have taken you in, all those years ago if we knew,"

"HAHA Cheryl raising the bastard?" Kyle sounded genuinely amused. Brax grinned too at the thought, any future conversation was halted by the door swinging open. Mark stood at the door while two of his men released Kyle and led him from the room. Brax started thrashing at his chains,

"Take me!" he demanded,

"Oh Brax, you might not see him but you will hear his screams...I hope," Mark laughed as he shut and locked the door.

xxxxx

Mark walked into his 'torture' cell and saw Kyle had been placed in a chair that reclined backwards. He hands and feet were tied to avoid him lashing out. Mark looked at the teenager, his eyes were wide and bright, his checks flushed and sweat poured out of his body, Kyle however didn't beg, he didn't even utter a sound.

"Being" Mark said as the chair lowered Kyle's head, a towel covered his face and water was forced down his throat.


	9. Chapter 9

**Sorry for the typo at the end of the last paragraph! Nothing worse than the suspension ruined by a spelling mistake! **

**Enjoy **

**Chapter 9**

At some point, Kyle had lost consciousness. He hurt all over, the water loading had taken the last of his strength and his body had given up the fight. He heard Mark order his men to stop before he faded into darkness.

In his unconscious state, he felt calm. Nothing hurt and he no longer felt on fire. Slowly his surroundings came into view, he was on the beach at Summer Bay. Sitting on the sand, he stared at the beautiful water.

"So beautiful," A voice said from beside him,

"Phoebe!" He broke into a huge smile at the sight of her, "There is so much I want to say to you!"

Smiling, she rested her head on his shoulder, "I know, it can wait, we have forever here," Kyle's face fell a little,

"Am I dead?"

"No, not yet. If you stay here with me you will be but at least we will be together"

"And we'll never see you again." A voice said solemnly from the other side, turning, he was greeted by his brothers, dropping his head, Kyle knew he had to make a decision. Die to be with Phoebe, or live to be with his brothers.

"I love her," he said eventually looking at his brothers, "It hurts too much to live without her"

"And it will hurt us everyday we live without you," Heath said.

Looking up at the sky, silent tears fell down Kyle's cheeks,

"You already gave me up for them once," Phoebe said quietly, "I don't want to leave you"

"Then don't," Kyle said quietly looking at her. He cupped her chin in his hand and looked her in the eye, "I need to go back, Brax is in trouble. I will find you, never leave me, and I will always find you." Looking back at him, Phoebe fought back tears,

"You live a long good life, Kyle Braxton. You love again and when you miss me, look at the clouds cause i will always be watching." They embraced a final time before Kyle felt himself being pulled back into consciousness, he desperately tried to soak in every detail of her,

"I love you Phoebe, now and forever," then before she could say anything, he faded back into consciousness.

He knew he was back by the pain. His wound had reopened and was sore and itchy. His throat was raw from purging all the water. His body was on fire and his head was cloudy. He tried desperately to focus on something in the room. He pulled tentatively at his restraints but they wouldn't give. He noticed amongst the fog in his brain that he was alone. He then pulled harder at his hands and realized that his cast was mushy from the water. Carefully without crying out, he freed his broken arm and then the rest of his body. Struggling out of the chair, Kyle knew he didn't have much time before he passed out again. He found a metal pipe on the table in the corner and grabbed it.

Shivering, his brain tried to understand how he could be so hot and yet freezing. Cradling his broken arm to his chest, he was about to open the door when it swung open in front of him. Standing there with a look of surprise was Mark. Before he could react, Kyle swung the pipe with as much force as he could, and connected to the side of Mark's head. Watching Mark fall limply down, Kyle struggled for balance. Reaching down, he took Mark's gun, leaving the pipe. Falling past the body and landing on the opposite wall, he was tempted to kill the man. Shaking the fog from his brain, Kyle decided to save Brax first. Fumbling in Mark's pockets he found a set of keys. He half staggered, half walked to Brax's cell at the end of the hallway. Opening up the door, he saw relief on his brothers face,

"Thank God," Brax whispered as Kyle desperately fought the fog to unlock the chains. Kyle had just unlocked the second one when on of Mark's men came into the room,

"What the hell?" Without any hesitation, Brax picked up the gun Kyle had dropped and fired two shots killing the man.

"Kyle," Brax took Kyle's head into his hands and forced his eyes to focus on him. They were half open and distant, the heat radiated off him and he knew he didn't have much time before Kyle couldn't fight the fever, "We have to go." Pulling his brother up, he rested him on his injured shoulder, grimacing in pain, he half carried, half dragged his brother into the hallway.

Mark was standing there, holding his head and the pipe, "That little shit killed my daughter,"

"Nah Mate, you did," and with that, Brax ended Mark Nicholsons life. Brax saw the other two men take off in the van and allowed himself time to breath. Kyle was getting heavier, his breathing was rapid and his eyes glassy, "Kyle Braxton, you stay awake," Brax gritted as he dragged Kyle outside.

Brax spied a ute in the driveway and prayed that it had keys, leaning Kyle against the hood, he saw the keys in the ignition but out of gas,

"Shit!" he screamed slamming the door as Kyle slid down the car into a sitting position. The morning sun was warm and Brax knew walking was out of the question. Kneeling down infront of Kyle, who was shivering and grasping his broken arm, "I'm going to find a phone, please stay awake,please" Kyle could only nod as Brax took off.

xxxxxxxxxxxxx

Heath had dejectedly returned to the house. Nobody knew anything and he refused to go to the cops for help. Walking in, he saw Ricky, Bianca and Casey look up hopefully. Shaking his head, Ricky grabbed her keys,

"I'm going to the cops," Just then Nate walked in,

"No sign of them?"

"Nothing," Heath said picking up a glass and throwing it against the wall. The smash gave them all a fright as they stared at each other awkwardly. There silence was broken by Heaths phone,

"What?" he snapped,

"Heath, it's me,"

"Brax."

xxxxxxxxxxxxxx

Brax had never been so relieved to hear Heath's voice,

"Where are ya?"

"We are on a farm out back of Yabbie Creek, it's down the end of a side road called Old Creek Road, mate, you gotta send help, Kyle's in a bad way,"

"Nate's here, talk to him and i'll drive him out," Nodding, Nate took the phone as Heath took Ricky's keys,

"Bring them back," She whispered, as Heath, Casey and Nate took off out of the door.

"Should we call an ambo?" Brax asked as Heath started the car,

"We'll be faster and i've got my bag. What's happening with him?"

"He's bad Nate, real bad. They tortured him for an hour doing God knows what, he's barely awake,"

"Ok, how hot is he?"

"Too hot," Brax said pushing his hand onto Kyle's forehead, "He's shivering too, his eyes are all glassy,"

"Brax, Kyle's body is shutting down," as Nate said that, Heath sped up, "His organs cannot handle the heat of the fever, we are still an hour away."

"So, i'm to watch him die?" Brax choked as exhaustion and pain were started to get to him,

"Not yet. Get him into a cold shower, if there's ice, bath him in that, you need to lower his core temperature and keep him awake,"

"I'll leave you on speaker," Brax shoved the phone into his pocket and heaved his semi-conscious brother up and once again dragged him into the farm house. Gently lowering him into the bath, Brax raced to the garage and found a massive chest freezer. Inside were the bodies of the farmers. Sighing, he returned to Kyle and turned the shower on, the water was freezing on his brothers too hot body. Leaving the phone on the sink, Brax sat behind Kyle ensuring the water fall down Kyle's head and over his body,

"No Brax, too cold" Kyle tried to fight but Brax held him in place,

"That's it Brax, keep him cool. We are coming."Nate said indicating to Heath to go as fast as possible.

"Brax," Kyle gritted, "Please don't, it's too cold, please stop" Kyle whimpered the last part, breaking Brax's heart, "Brax" Kyle screamed but Brax held him tighter, "Don't put me in the shed Brax, please don't"

"Your not in the shed Kyle, i've got you"

"Please don't hurt me, please, i'm sorry" Brax let tears fall down his cheeks at the pain in his brothers voice, after a while, Kyle stopped thrashing. He turned his head towards the door, "Hey Phoebe," he said to the empty door,

"No Kyle, No!" Brax shook his brother, "Nate he's hallucinating real bad now!"

"We are nearly there, keep him awake!"

"Kyle, Kyle!" Brax moved from behind Kyle to in front of him, "Kyle" Kyle slowly shifted his gaze from the door to Brax, his eyes were clearer and the shivering had died down a little, but he was still way to hot,

"I'm scared" he said softly before closing his eyes,

"No, Kyle! NO!" Brax screamed.

**Phew, that was a bit hard to translate from brain to paper! **


	10. Chapter 10

**Chapter 10**

"Brax!" Nate screamed running into the abandoned farm house, followed by Heath and Casey,

"I'm in here!" they followed Brax's voice to the bathroom where Brax was still trying desperately to wake Kyle,

"Casey, go find as many bottles as you can and fill them with water. Heath, help me carry him to the car." Between Nate and Heath, they carried the unconscious Kyle to the car while Brax followed. Nate quickly took Kyle's temperature, "43 degrees, it's high but he's out of the danger zone,"

"Why's he not waking up?" Heath asked watching Casey carrying out bottles of water,

"His body is fighting an infection and possibly pneumonia. Get us to the hospital." Heath sped them as fast as he cold, Nate poured water over Kyle's head and tried to keep him cool while monitoring his temperature, "Casey, ring Hannah, have her standing by,"

Nodding, Casey quickly rung Hannah. Nate kept checking Kyle's vitals, he looked up to ask Brax a question when he spied the oldest Braxton shivering and the dried blood on his shirt,

"Brax!" Brax snapped out of his dazed state and realized Nate was leaning over Kyle and trying to examine him, pushing his hands away, Brax snapped at Nate,

"I'm fine, deal with him,"

"Shit Brax, you've been shot" Casey exclaimed from the front seat,

"I'm fine, it's a flesh wound," Nate continued to try and have a look, "Seriously Nate, save him" Reluctantly, Nate went back to slowly pouring the water over Kyle's body. When they arrived at the hospital, Hannah had a team of nurses waiting. They quickly got Kyle loaded onto a gurney and rushed through into theatre again.

"April, look at Brax," Nate ordered April who had come out. Brax followed her dutifully to an examination room.

xxxxxxxxxxxx

"Brax," Ricky sighed with relief walking through the hospital doors. Brax had been seen by April who had given him antibiotics to stop infection and a sling. He had been waiting with Casey and Heath. Ricky rushed into Brax's arms and noted how exhausted he was. He let her snuggled and rested his chin on her head, he held her as long as he could before she guided him back into a seat. Bianca had followed Ricky in and smiled at the sight of her brother in law,

"Any word yet?" she asked tenderly sitting next to Heath,

"Not yet," Casey said quietly. After a while Hannah came out with a tired looking Nate, all the Braxton's and girls quickly stood.

"He's going to be fine," with that simple sentence all looked so relieved. " He has reopened his surgery wound which led to an infection which did not help his fever. We've got his temp going down however, he is still feverish and the IV needs time,"

"Can we go in?" Heath asked holding Bianca's hand,

"Of course," They all went to push past him when he quickly stopped them to finished his sentence, " But, he needs rest and plenty of it, as do you Brax," Nodding his agreement, Brax led the party into Kyle's room. Ricky held back a little to speak to her Ex,

"As do you Nate, your exhausted, go home." Smiling, she carried on into the room.

"Sophie will be having kittens! She's right, go home to your wife," Hannah reinforced the tired doctor.

After a moment alone, Nate looked up and said to no one in particular, "Bloody Braxtons."

xxxxxx

Kyle was groggy when they all entered the room but he managed a tired smile for his family,

"You goose! We've been scared shitless about you! I was worried you'd die without paying for my ute!" Heath smiled in good jest,

"Love you too Heath," Kyle said quietly in good humour. He was still pale and shivering slightly, Brax sat heavily next to the bed,

"You going to live?" Brax asked,

Nodding, Kyle looked his brother in the eye, "Thanks to you. You ok?"

Brushing off the question, Brax continued seriously, "You are not to leave this hospital until Nate says, you got it?" Kyle nodded again, "We will not lose you Kyle, not matter what's happened, you are our brother. You are stuck with us forever." The two brothers stared at each other silently, the other's knew something had changed and these two had a bond now that would be hard to break.

"Go home, all of you. I'm staying." Casey said breaking the silence and shooing his family out. Casey watched Kyle drift to sleep before getting himself comfortable. He had never seen Kyle so vulnerable and he realized that he cared for him. Despite everything that had happened, the kidnapping and then Tamara, he cared deeply for Kyle and the wy he had changed his life around. He was as worried about Kyle as he was for Brax. "You really are my brother," Casey whispered realizing.

xxxxx

It took a couple of days for Kyle to get right but when he was on the mend, Emmerson had had come for his statement and apologized to Kyle and Brax for not being able to do anything after the accident. He also sadly told Kyle that Phoebe had been laid to rest in Melbourne that morning.

After Emmerson had left, it was just Kyle and Heath. Heath allowed Kyle to soak in the news,

"After Rocco, I didn't want to go on." Kyle's eyes flew to Heath's face, he had never talked 'feelings' to him before, "I know what it's like to love someone with all your heart and then loose them."

Kyle's eyes instantly teared up, "Does it get easier?"

"Nope, but you learn to live again. Not a day goes past I don't think about what he would have grown up to be, what he would have looked like, how I'd teach him to surf, to call me dad, but I don't love Harley or Darcy less." Kyle didn't speak as emotions over took him, "You have us Kyle, no matter what, and we will stick with you."

**I know, not as long as the others but that part of the story has come to a wrap! I don't often ask people to review but I would like your opinions! I want to carry this story on with more trouble for the boys including explosions! Hostage situation! Drug Dealers! Each a story on their own about the boys! **

**I'm happy to finish this here and start a completely new one or just carry this one on! **

**Please let me know :D I have the next one started already! **


End file.
